Steven Wright hopeful of May return after surgery for sports hernia

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The pain was so acute Steven Wright still remembers the exact date it started.

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By
Tim Britton
Posted Feb. 20, 2014 @ 8:23 am

FORT MYERS, Fla. — The pain was so acute Steven Wright still remembers the exact date it started.

It was December 19 when Wright first started experiencing sharp pains whenever he tried to get up. A series of appointments with Red Sox doctors followed, eventually leading to surgery on a sports hernia on February 10. Earlier attempts to treat the issue non-surgically weren’t able to solve the problem.

“It sucks, but it’s one of those things where, if it was going to happen, it happened at a good time,” said Wright, who made his first appearance at Red Sox camp on Thursday. “The season is long. Hopefully I can get back in May.”

For now, Wright’s rehab is likely to involve some basic massaging and light cardio — “training the body to learn how to move again” in Wright’s words. He hopes to be throwing again in six weeks.

“I’m not going to rush it because the last thing I want to do is compound it and get something else,” Wright said. “It’s part of the game sometimes. You’re going to get hurt. I’m glad it’s not my arm.”

Prior to the injury, Wright looked set to start the year in the PawSox rotation and be one of the first potential call-ups to the majors in case of emergency. This pushes that timeline back and perhaps opens up a rotation spot for another pitcher to claim in Triple-A.

Further, one of Wright’s advantages over the other pitchers slated to start the season in Pawtucket was his major-league readiness, having spent some time with the Red Sox a season ago. Now that he won’t be ready to pitch until at least May, there’s a good chance some of the more inexperienced pitchers in the system — such as Anthony Ranaudo and Matt Barnes — could pass him on the hierarchy for an emergency call-up.